spinning powerlifting into my DO PS?

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baxt1412

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So I have been powerlifting for about 2 years now and it has become basically my only hobby (never really had a non-lifting hobby.. but before i just lifted without any real goals) ever since i quit playing college football after 2 years (just couldn't balance the time commitment anymore w/ a double major and RA on campus plus other ECs).

I didn't really have enough space to fit it into my MD PS without making it too short which would make it seem out of place. My MD PS focuses on a family history (10 people in 4 generations) with breast cancer (no BRCA1 or BRCA2) and how it has influenced my career choice, etc. I am really thinking that my powerlifting and focus on strength/muscles could potentially fit in well to a DO PS.. but what do you guys think? Do you think I could say that the training and competing has gotten me really interested in the anatomy and physiology itself but also injury prevention/general wellness maintenance through tissue manipulation (but i haven't had OMT.. just ART and graston). Do you think this would all be applicable?
 
I would definitely mention it. I mentioned briefly in my PS that I was always sports minded and that is in fact how I became interested in the human medicine. It definitely won't hurt. If anything, I think it shows that you understand and take care of your own body, which may help you take care and understand others. Just be yourself and try to find an interesting way to throw it in there.

Best of luck.
 
Didn't know how it would look since i'm trying to relate non-DO treatments to OMT. but thanks. i've seen on here time and time again that your PS only has *significant* weight on your app if it is REALLY good or REALLY bad and i would probably agree with that. there are just tens of thousands of apps circulating around, the chances of an average person having an impeccable PS is not super likely, but if you put in the work and get it read by plenty of people it will likely not be horrendous.
 
If you can make it work, you can definitely throw it in there. You could also mention the willpower aspect of things- med school is as much about willpower and commitment than it is about anything else. Pelting is the physical embodiment of willpower and commitment. Just a thought.
 
So that means you put powerlifting into your EC's?
I have been body building for 4 years, I took it really seriously this past year, lost 17 lbs, now got a six pack.
I was going to put this on my EC's but people told me not to... Maybe I should give my application a little update then
 
I don't see why you shouldn't. It is something you have shown serious dedication to. Now if you had something that was like a leadership position, or research, would I suggest you put bodybuilding in its place if you were out of spots for ECs? No, of course not. But again, there is no reason why something you have put 1000s of hours into shouldn't be on your EC as long as it is appropriate 😉
 
I have been consistently weight lifting for over 6 years now but I don't know how I feel about putting such into my EC on the AACOMAS application. It definitely shows determination and hard work so it isn't a bad thing. However, I feel its classified as more of a hobby rather than an extracurricular.

If you happen to be a personal trainer, have placed in bodybuilding competitions or volunteer in some sort of way at your local gym then by all means put it down on your application. But if it is something you genuinely enjoy, similarly to myself, then I'm uncertain on whether or not it belongs in the EC category. I'd stick to throwing it in briefly to your PS. Just my thoughts.
 
I have placed in both of my powerlifting meets. Although both have been 2nd place because there was only two of us LOL!!! but ADCOMS don't need to know that 🙂
 
baxt1412 said:
I have placed in both of my powerlifting meets. Although both have been 2nd place because there was only two of us LOL!!! but ADCOMS don't need to know that 🙂
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What exactly does a two person powerlifting meet involve? He lifts his 1rm, points to the bar, grunts a bit, and if you can't lift it, he wins? (kidding, of course)
 
Then certainly put it down. If you have competitively power lifted it is definitely something you should put down. Make sure you make note of the duration of your activities and and improvements you have made! 2nd place will look great, and as you said, they do not need to know how many participants you placed out of.
 
It's tough to get a lot of competition in a relatively small sport when it is 1) individually competing and 2) divided by age, weight, and drug status. That just further divides it.

Mad Jack said:
What exactly does a two person powerlifting meet involve? He lifts his 1rm, points to the bar, grunts a bit, and if you can't lift it, he wins? (kidding, of course)
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didn't see your post the first time i posted. two people were in my age/weight/drug status division. there were over 100 lifters at each of the meets, but they were older, younger, heavier, lighter, on certain "supplements", or women... or any combination of these!
 
Make sure to mention that since you lift regularly you are a superior applicant in comparison to your non-lifting peers.

Example: Boulder like trapezius muscles to support your stethoscope and a solid grip to earn respect from your peers and patients. (Joking. Or am I?)
 
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F=ma said:
Make sure to mention that since you lift regularly you are a superior applicant in comparison to your non-lifting peers.

Example: Boulder like trapezius muscles to support your stethoscope and a solid grip to earn respect from your peers and patients. (Joking. Or am I?)
Click to expand...
they won't even have to buy retractors or bone saws.. i'll just use my bare hands for any of the tough work.
 
Simply put, proper lifting does the body well. I think anyone who is in the health care field or plans to should understand and take advantage of the benefits. It's never too late to start!

Supplementation may or may not be necessary for individuals. If you are interested in supplements for lifting or overall well being, feel free to PM me. I work for a wellness company and I can help you open up a shopping account with us.

Best of luck to you all in your fitness goals and medical endeavors.
 
Yes OP, this is actually one of the highlights of my application (having set a world record and become a sponsored athlete now). I would definitely talk about how passionate you are about it and its relation to medicine (ex. health, dedication, etc.).
 
I know it's important to you, but just don't jump off a cliff with it. The PS is for "Who am I?" and "Why Medicine?"




baxt1412 said:
So I have been powerlifting for about 2 years now and it has become basically my only hobby (never really had a non-lifting hobby.. but before i just lifted without any real goals) ever since i quit playing college football after 2 years (just couldn't balance the time commitment anymore w/ a double major and RA on campus plus other ECs).

I didn't really have enough space to fit it into my MD PS without making it too short which would make it seem out of place. My MD PS focuses on a family history (10 people in 4 generations) with breast cancer (no BRCA1 or BRCA2) and how it has influenced my career choice, etc. I am really thinking that my powerlifting and focus on strength/muscles could potentially fit in well to a DO PS.. but what do you guys think? Do you think I could say that the training and competing has gotten me really interested in the anatomy and physiology itself but also injury prevention/general wellness maintenance through tissue manipulation (but i haven't had OMT.. just ART and graston). Do you think this would all be applicable?
Click to expand...
 
Goro said:
I know it's important to you, but just don't jump off a cliff with it. The PS is for "Who am I?" and "Why Medicine?"
Click to expand...
it certainly would not be my main focus. i already have my main points covered w/ my family history of breast cancer but think the powerlifting is slightly more pertinent to DO. thank you for your reminder to keep it focused.
 
wjs010 said:
As long as you're not into crossfit. Because if you were, they may think you believe in things with no scientific basis lol
Click to expand...

Crossfit will keep certain medical specialties in business thanks to crossfitters subjecting themselves to ridiculous exercise routines. A fine way to injure yourself.
 
just going to update here...


so this is how my MD PS was laid out:
  • attention grabber to start off my story of 9 people (including my mom) in 4 generations of my mom's side of the family to get breast cancer (i don't go into it in my PS but they are BRCA1/2 negative)
  • Talk about how advancements in oncology helped find my mom's cancer early
  • Talk about my paid summer research at an MD school on pancreatic cancer and how research and clinical treatment cannot exist separate from each other, the doctors and researchers have to both work equally as hard
  • Talk about how my aunt's cancer was not found as early and goes into how hard a double mastectomy was on her emotionally and then talk into how her oncologist was able to care not only for her physically but mentally
  • Talk about how I realized I needed more than just research - i needed that emotional/hands on connection
  • Talk about my development in a few areas that I believe are strongly needed in a physician's life (no i don't define what makes a good physician)
  • wrap everything up

I think it works well for medicine in general, but I have to get some osteopathy-related stuff in there. The first place I can see that I could take out relatively easy is talking about research.
Do you guys think it would be a bad idea to exclude talking about my summer research to be replaced with powerlifting which lead me to osteopathy-related techniques (chiro, graston, ART) and talk about how a localized treatment can result in changes across the entire body?

In the case of a DO PS... is talking about osteopathy > research?
 
F=ma said:
Crossfit will keep certain medical specialties in business thanks to crossfitters subjecting themselves to ridiculous exercise routines. A fine way to injure yourself.
Click to expand...
Hahaha
 
My PS touched on how weight lifting helped me develop discipline and persistence, and sparked a nascent interest in science.

I'd work it in if you can weave it into your narrative well.
 
I'm beginning to think that i can't really fit it in too well without having a major overhaul. I don't think it will be a deal breaker either way.
 
You guys are looking too much into the PS thing. If yours stands out (which is quite rare) then it'll help you. If it sucks, it'll make you look bad which will hurt if everything else is borderline. If yours is decent (like almost everyone elses) then it just gives an intro to adcoms as to who you are and won't help or hurt your app.
 
studentp0x said:
You guys are looking too much into the PS thing. If yours stands out (which is quite rare) then it'll help you. If it sucks, it'll make you look bad which will hurt if everything else is borderline. If yours is decent (like almost everyone elses) then it just gives an intro to adcoms as to who you are and won't help or hurt your app.
Click to expand...
I'm just trying to submit the best PS I can. That's all. I appreciate your input.
 
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